>No difference
>
>It runs slow if all 3 of these conditions are present:
>1. It involves nested SELECT
>2. The files are open in at least one more VFP session
>3. No FLOCK is issued on the file being updated (or deleted from)
>
>Why?

This is a interesting issue.
On my last post, the nested SELECT is a exclusive cursor,
then the nested table is out.

Point 1.

* try
BEGIN TRAN
DELETE ..... JOIN ....
END TRAN

Point 2. Simulating this with 2 cursors,
the Rushmore report print a Intermediate optimization step,
but i don't look this into your Rushmore report.

Point 3.
The Deleted table is a local table or a LAN table ?
Can you do the job into the table's machine ?

Fabio